Domain-specific accuracy of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment subsections in Parkinson’s disease. Avoiding spectrum bias caused by healthy controls. Diagnostic accuracy of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) for cognitive screening in old age psychiatry: Determining cutoff scores in clinical practice. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations.
Further research is needed, especially to determine the best score threshold for accurate dementia diagnosis, especially in primary care settings. The authors say that the quality of the studies conducted on this topic wasn’t high enough to strongly recommend using the MoCA test for dementia diagnosis in various healthcare settings. Yet, using this cutoff also led to a significant number of incorrect results, with over 40% of people without dementia being mistakenly identified as having dementia. But other parts, like paying attention and using language, didn’t work as well.Ī 2021 review of seven studies found that, when practitioners used a score of less than 26 as a cutoff, the MoCA correctly detected more than 94% of people with dementia in different situations. The researchers found that some parts of the MoCA, like the executive function section that deals with planning and organization, were good at spotting concerns. This implies that while the MoCA can identify people needing more tests, it’s not ideal for diagnosing cognitive issues conclusively.Ī 2017 study looked at how well the MoCA works for people with Parkinson’s disease. In addition, when these results were compared to the performance of healthy individuals, the MoCA appeared to be more effective than it is in real clinical settings. Yet researchers note that its reliability for diagnosing these problems was limited. The test was able to confirm a typical ability to think and rule out severe issues like dementia. One study from 2020 assessed the MoCA’s effectiveness in detecting cognitive concerns among older adults in an outpatient mental health clinic. It appears to be particularly effective at identifying cognitive changes in individuals with higher education levels or when mild cognitive changes are the main focus of clinical attention.īut its accuracy can be influenced by factors such as the characteristics of the person being tested and the setting in which the test is administered. Trail making requires cognitive flexibility generated through the dorsolateral and medial prefrontal cortices.The accuracy of the MoCA test may vary depending on the specific context and population being assessed.At the end of the second trial, inform the subject that (s)he will be asked to recall these words again by saying, “ I will ask you to recall those words again at the end of the test.” Try to remember and tell me as many words as you can, including words you said the first time.” Put a check in the allocated space for each word the subject recalls after the second trial. When the subject indicates that (s)he has finished (has recalled all words), or can recall no more words, read the list a second time with the following instructions: “ I am going to read the same list for a second time. It doesn’t matter in what order you say them.” Mark a check in the allocated space for each word the subject produces on this first trial.
When I am through, tell me as many words as you can remember. I am going to read a list of words that you will have to remember now and later on.
Read a list of 5 words at a rate of 1 word per second, giving the following instructions: “ This is a memory test.